The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-06-06
THE BOOK OF M0RM0NS.
A NEW STORY OF THE ORIGIN OF
THE MORMONS BIBLE.


Sol Spaulding the Mountaineering
Bits of History Related by His Grand
Ason-Where the Old Man Got the Ma
terial for His Work.
The recent conference of the Josephites,
or homogeneous Mormons, at Kirkland, o.,
and the extended reports OF their proceed
ings in the Globe Democrat, says CORE
spondent of that journal, has renewed pubic
interest in the peculiar faith to which mem
bers of this church subscribe. The origin OF
the Book of Mormon has never been clearly
established The Latter Day Saints, OF
course, accept the statements of Joe Smith
and believe it to be an inspired work. The
general public, however, are hardly as
credulous and regard the alleged Bible
as a fraud-the work of some clever
romancist rather than as the translation
of hieroglyphics on golden plates by nine
tenth century prophet. The Spaulding
theory, with which every one at all ac-
quainted with the subject is familiar, mas
the most advocates. They hold that Spauld-
ings manuscript of his romance, The
Manuscript Found" fell into the hands OF
Joe Smith, Sidney Rigdon and others, and
from that fanciful work was constructed
the Book of Mormon. Ii this theory be
true, it will astonish orthodox church PEG
pie to learn that a Congregational divine,
one of the foremost of his time IN New
England, is responsible for the Introduction
of the twin relic of barbarism," as the
Utah church has been called in this country.
Rev. Ethan Smith, who died at an adj
vanced age early in the ''forties, was one OF
the lights in the Congregational church IN
New England A man of deep learning, he
was at once q preacher, author and phlloso-
pher, holding to many ideas far in advance
of his time. One of his pet hobbies was the
belief that the North American Indians
were descended from the lost tribes of Israel
who came over to this continent several
hundred years before Christ, built great
cities and reached a very high state OF CHILL
zation.
Rev. DIR. Smith wrote work on the sub
ject which, after completion, he decided not
to publish, fearing that it might injure his
reputation as theological writer. This
book was an elaboration of the theory DR.
Smith had so long maintained. Taking as
its foundation the migration of the lost
tribes of Israel to the Western continent, it
described the hegira from Palestine, the
establishment of the Jews in what is now
Central America and Mexico, the found
ing of great empire, and It's gradual
decline and fall 1t told of magnifi-
cent cities inhabited by an enlightened and
Christian people The author claimed for
them civilization equal to that of Egypt
or Jerusalem. Hundreds of years passed,
and the history of the Eastern
Jews was repeated on the west
ern continent. Quarrels between the
various tribes sprang up, bloody wars were
waged, and the process of disintegration be-
gan. Gradually the people were, scattered,
their cities destroyed and all semblance to
nation was lost Thousands persisted by pes
thence and the sword, and the remnants of
a once mighty nation relapsed into a state
of barbarism. From them their descend
ants Dr. Smith claimed, were the Indians
of North America and the Aztec of Mexico
This is almost exactly similar to the story
told in the Book of Mormon.
Solomon Spaulding was warm adnlirer
of DIR. Smith, and when young man stud
led under his tuition. He became interested
in his theories regarding the settlement of
| America, aud in return Dr. Smith took the
young student into his confidence and
| granted him a perusal of his unpublished
book. Spaulding was deeply impressed with
the truth of this theory and pursued his in
vestigations even farther than DR.. Smith
had ventured. Taking the latter's views, as
expressed in his book, Spaulding some years
later wrote his famous Manuscript
ROUND, WHICH alberWdFd IeH InUO
the hands of Joe Smith and was
reconstructed into the Book of
Mormon. Indeed it is not at all unlikely
that DR.. Smiths original manuscript,
which, it is said, Spaulding had in his pos
session, suffered similar fate. At any rate
| it has never been seen since. These facts
are told your correspondent by a grandson
of DIR. Smith, now residing in this city. He
states that the Book of Mormon" differs
very slightly, as far as its general outline is
concerned, from the historical romance
written by his grandfather sixty or seventy
years ago, and he is quite certain that the
Mormon faith is founded on the production
of that worthy pastors fertile imagination